Should I Insure My Rings and Jewelry?

Should I Insure My Rings and Jewelry?


Yes, you really do need to insure your good stuff.
And it's not as hard as you think.


The Cold, Hard Facts:
  • Your homeowner's or renter's insurance will not be adequate to safeguard your diamonds, gold and other good stuff.
  • You need to start with an accurate, detailed appraisal by a qualified professional.
  • People who simply work in a jewelry store are not qualified to give you an accurate appraisal. They need specific credentials (read on).
  • Both the appraisal and the jewelry insurance you'll need are a tiny investment relative to the value of your precious jewelry.
  • It is SO worth it.

Here's another cold, hard fact: life happens, to put it politely. A gorgeous diamond ring may be on your finger one moment, then gone like yesterday the next. Theft is one reason. Or, maybe the little clutch-back that holds a post earring in place slips off, and suddenly you're only rocking one piece of the rock in one lobe, pirate-outlaw style.

Or, even if you don't lose the ring, earring, watch, bracelet, brooch, necklace or tiara (hey, girls can dream!), damage also happens. Gems have been known to pop out of their settings, for example, especially when we wear and enjoy pieces like rings every day.

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Losing fine jewelry is painful. Of course, there's the cost of replacing it, and that's gotta hurt. But also, precious jewelry often carries emotional weight as well as financial value. Diamonds, gold, pearls and other precious stuff most often come to us as gifts from loved ones, including family inheritance. So the loss of precious jewelry may carry a double sting.

That's the bad news. The good news is that jewelry insurance is not just for rich people. In fact, it's all about protecting the value of your investment, and the entire shebang usually equates to about 10 cents on the dollar: appraising and insuring a diamond engagement ring, for instance, may initially cost you $300, and less the following year since you already have the appraisal. Not bad, considering the ring itself may have cost $3,000 or much more.


HOME, SWEET HOME

Here's why your homeowner's insurance or renter's insurance won't cut it if you lose or damage your fine jewelry: they aren't jewelry specialists.

Most homeowner's and renter's policies offer a very low figure for standard coverage for jewelry, usually about $1,000 - $1,500 for theft. They don't cover "mysterious disappearances". And you will need to pay a deductible on the claim on top of this. So it's not much coverage. Homeowner's and renter's insurance companies specialize in replacing roofs in tornadoes, carpets in floods, fire damage and other disasters and catastrophes not involving your jewelry.

If you want to insure a more valuable piece of jewelry through your homeowner's or renter's insurance, you will need to purchase a separate rider specifically for your jewelry items. Another thing to consider: if you do file a jewelry claim, then your total homeowner's or renter's jewelry insurance premium will go up for the next few years.

START BY FINDING A QUALIFIED APPRAISER

Start with this: your appraisal must be done by someone who is professionally trained as an appraiser, and who is a graduate of Gemological Institute of America. Ask to see their graduate diploma as a GIA Graduate Gemologist. This is not mean or pushy. This is taking care of your investment. Unfortunately, many folks in the jewelry industry claim they are GIA Graduate Gemologists, but they are not. Here is how to verify GIA education credentials.

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Note: someone who has taken a few GIA classes and not completed the curriculum may be a nice person, convenient, a local neighborhood business, a great salesperson. All good, but without the diploma, not the right person to do your jewelry appraisal.

Also, whoever does your appraisal must be an active member of the National Association of Jewelry Appraisers, and adhere to their professional code of ethics. Click here to find a NAJA jewelry appraiser.

The appraisal process requires credentialed skill. An insurance company adjuster uses the appraisal you provide to handle your claim, if and when the time comes. If the appraisal does not cover all aspects of the insured piece, your claim resolution will not be a happy one.

Not every jewelry store is qualified to issue accurate and detailed appraisals of jewelry. A weak appraisal will not help your insurance adjuster if it lacks detail, inflates value of the piece, or is inaccurate in other ways. Most poor appraisals are simply a brief description, along the lines of what you'd find on a sales receipt for the item. It's not enough to help you get your value back.

Bear in mind, that appraising a vintage, antique or custom-made piece of jewelry may be more challenging than assessing modern, mass-produced pieces in terms of insurance replacement.  One reason being that diamonds were cut differently 100 years ago.

A truly valid, useful appraisal basically tells a jeweler how to recreate a near-identical piece, and absolutely must include:

  • A precise recording of a gemstone's length, width, depth, color and clarity
  • Specific notes on the design details and key characteristics and qualities
  • Widths, thicknesses, gram weights, and types of prongs or settings used

And, you need great photos. Today, this is literally a snap. Your phone can capture awesome images of astonishing clarity and resolution. Take lots of shots from every angle, and store them onto a flash drive for safekeeping. Date the images.

ON THE SUBJECT OF APPRAISAL ETHICS

Warning: Do not use an appraiser who wants to charge you a percentage of the appraised value as their fee. This practice is, in a word, sketchy. It's highly unethical. Jewelry appraisers who charge a fee that is based on a percentage of the appraised item's value tend to inflate the value so that they can pocket some quick cash. If an appraiser quotes price as a percentage fee, take your precious gems and your precious self elsewhere.

WHAT IT WILL COST AND HOW LONG IT WILL TAKE

Rates for your appraisal will vary depending upon the location and experience of your appraiser, the jewelry store's overhead and other factors. The price can range from $75 - $150/hour. Depending upon the complexity of the piece, sometimes it can take an hour or more to appraise your piece. On the other hand, sometimes several items can be appraised within one hour. Given the skilled nature of this work, and the credentials required to do it, it is a solid investment.

When you have your complete appraisal, including your digital file of photographs, in order, you're ready to apply for the insurance itself. Be sure that you read and understand your policy fully before making your commitment.

BONUS: FREE JEWELRY INVENTORY SHEET

Keep yourself organized and inventory your fine jewelry.   Create a document, maybe an excel spread sheet, and list your jewelry, with descriptions, when and where purchased, and price paid.

Ron Yates

My Advice About Jewelry Insurance:

My friends, I think it's safe to say I've seen it all:

The car-door slams on the ring-finger and knocks out the diamond (ouch).

The jewelry left in the sock-drawer is missing??? when you return from a business trip or vacation, because you didn’t want to risk losing it while travelling (hmmmm).

The solitaire or single-carat stud goes down the garbage disposal (also ouch).

The key is to be prepared for whatever life brings.

Generally, I recommend that you not depend upon your homeowner's or renter's insurance to cover your fine jewelry in the event that it is lost or stolen. If you do choose to go this route, I recommend State Farm, because we've had good experiences with them. I am basing this advice on my years in jewelry business, dealing with hundreds of claims and dozens of insurance companies. I've been at this, folks, since 1988.

My suggestion is that you insure your jewelry through a company which specializes in jewelry. The reasons are obvious.

There are several reputable jewelry insurance providers in the USA. At our jewelry store in Modesto, CA, we recommend Perfect Circle Jewelry Insurance by Jewelers Mutual, and also GemShield. Perfect Circle Jewelry Insurance is a product of Jewelers Mutual. And all Jewelers Mutual does is jewelry, nothing else. They are the leading experts in jewelry replacement coverage. No one comes close. Jewelers Mutual was actually founded by real jewelers in 1913, insuring personal jewelry and jewelry businesses. They have insured our jewelry store since 1995.

Why I like Perfect Circle Insurance by Jewelers Mutual:

Primarily, they know jewelry -- that's all they insure. So they know the pitfalls that may accompany your jewelry: loss, damage, mysterious disappearances and theft.

Additionally, they do everything in their power to satisfy the claim and make their insured customer happy. Our store is a replacement center for Jewelers Mutual. As such, I've been personally handling the jewelry claims for them since 1995, several hundred of them. And I cannot recall a single claim where the customer was not delighted with the way Jewelers Mutual took care of them.

Jewelers Mutual has an excellent track record of servicing and paying claims quickly, with more than 95% of responding customers rating themselves as "highly satisfied' with their experience and the outcome.

The Essential Buyer's Guide to Jewelry Insurance

With Perfect Circle Insurance from Jewelers Mutual, you can choose a $0 deductible or a $100, $250 or $500 amount.

Even with a zero deductible, your yearly premiums are very affordable. Here are some examples of the annual cost to insure a $5,000 ring with a $0 deductible, in the following locations:

Modesto, CA - $75/year
Oakdale, CA - $75/year
San Francisco, CA - $75/year
Manhattan, NY - $100/year

Another benefit is that if you file a jewelry claim with Jewelers Mutual, this will not increase your homeowner's insurance premiums.

Their coverage includes:

  • Loss
  • Damage
  • Theft
  • Mysterious Disappearance
  • Worldwide Coverage
  • Preventative Repair (no other insurance company offers this!) Yes, they will pay the jeweler to do some maintenance on your jewelry, such as re-tipping your diamonds. Cheaper than buying you new diamonds!

Remember to start with the basics

By the way, I cannot emphasize enough how crucial and essential it is to begin with an accurate, professional appraisal of your fine jewelry. This expertise is a key aspect of our success as a business, thanks in no small part to the outstanding skills and talents of Mechelle Yates, co-founder of Yates & Co Jewelers. Mechelle is a GIA Graduate Gemologist, and a member of the National Association of Jewelry appraisers. She takes appointments for jewelry appraisals here in California's Central Valley. Read more about Mechelle Yates' jewelry appraisals.

Accurate appraisal and efficient handling of insurance claims are vital to how we have kept our customers confident and loyal.

May you never lose your jewelry.

And may you continue to celebrate life's moments with something precious that sparkles and feels wonderful to wear against your skin.

Check out our jewelry blog for more fascinating information.